Sony has published a new developer diary video about the upcoming Wonderbook title Diggs Nightcrawler. The video is called “Who Bumped Humpty?” and focuses on the protagonist, the bookworm detective Diggs, whose motivation through the game is to find out who murdered Humpty Dumpty and thereby clear his name.
As you'd expect from a noir-style detective who stands wrongfully accused of the murder of his best friend, Diggs has a bit of an attitude. According to the representatives from Moonbot Studios – the founder and creative director – who describe him in admiring tones, “You don't mess with him; he's always got something witty to say,” and his demeanour and the way he talks conveys a “self-amused cruel superiority”. When the three little pigs – who appear to be reporters from the looks of their trenchcoats, fedoras, and the big camera one of them carries – accuse Diggs of the crime, he turns to the player and quips:
“I'm going to try to find Humpty's shell before these three little piggies try to blow my house down.”
An interesting feature of the game is the way the developers have incorporated the Wonderbook so that the player is more than just a reader/observer turning pages but an active participant in the story. Diggs and the other characters will interact with the player, assumed to be a kid (damn!), and Diggs will even build up a relationship with the player over time as he begins to trust him or her more.
Diggs Nightcrawler will launch later this month in Europe, but not until the holidays in North America. Will it make more people pay attention to the Wonderbook?
